A month goes quick

We have been really busy. That is no excuse though. I (Andy) had finals for the last week of my first session of language school. Then, the day after I finished, we headed to Autlan, which Jessie got to see for the first time. We stayed there for a week and got sick while we were there. So, when we got back, we crashed. After getting home, our next priority was working on our newsletter. Needless to say, our blog has been a bit neglected. I apologize for that. I am going to work on communicating more often through the week.

It has been a bit challenging balancing school and home work with the family life. I must say that it is a bit weird to be going back to school. I am learning the language slowly, but surely.

The trip to Autlan was a good trip for Jessie and I, as Jessie had only seen pictures and a small video of what Autlan is like. Even I had a different opinion of Autlan. It is a much smaller city than the 10 million strong city of Guadalajara. I think it would have been a much harder transition, if we had gone to the small town and then moved to the big city. In Autlan you will never have to worry about traffic. Actually, there are more motorcycles and bicycles in Autlan than cars, I think. It would seem that way, as the branch of Guadalajara University is there and the college kids need to get around the city. We are very excited to go to Autlan and get started in helping in the ministry there. We have already committed to teaching two of the levels of English that start in September. As we wrote in our newsletter, this is where a lot of fruit is coming out of. The seeds are being sown and they are beginning to grow. John and Elizabeth have started La Roca Church for people to go to, as they begin to see the truth setting them free.

Jessie had her birthday on Sunday. We ended up going, after church, to Lake Chapala, which is about an hour drive from home. It is the largest lake in Mexico. It was a good day to go, the weather was beautiful. We went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner and then went to an outside market that was really busy. Sundays are the Saturdays of the U.S. Most Mexicans have to work half days on Saturdays, so they plan on doing everything on Sundays. We, then, went back to Rick and Jo'ell's house for some homemade carrot cake (Jessie's favorite cake).

This weekend we are going to celebrate Anna's birthday with Christian, Rick and Jo'ell's youngest, who also just turned four this month. If I forgot to mention who Rick and Jo'ell are, they are our teammates from the same mission as us and are doing language school as well. They are doing the same thing we are. They will be moving to Autlan in August, as well, to help with the ministry. They have become a great help and encouragement to us. We have really enjoyed getting to know them. The more time we spend with them, the more we realize that God has brought us together. Jessie and I both feel like we have known them for a long time and it has been only two months. They are experiencing the same culture shock we are, I could not imagine being here without them. The girls love to play with their kids, whenever we go over to their house, and they have been a tremendous blessing to Jessie and I.